John Fry was born in South London on 16 June 1922, the son of a general practitioner, and was educated at Whitgift School, Croydon, and Guy's Hospital Medical School, qualifying in 1944. He took his FRCS diploma in 1947, but very soon decided to take up general practice, and he remained a single-han

Jack Hesketh Beasley was born in Toronto, Canada on 31 March 1899. He qualified in Canada and came to England, obtaining the FRCS while at the London Hospital. He practised in Blackpool as a surgeon until 1939 when he joined the RAMC and went to France as a surgical specialist with No 4 General Hosp

George Elkington was born in Newport, Shropshire on 20 March 1889, the eldest child of two general practitioners, Ernest Alfred and Annie Isabella Baddeley. The Baddeley practice had existed in Newport since the 1770's and the Elkington family had practised medicine in Birmingham since the 1830's. G

Henry Herbert Evans Batten was a GP in Cambridge. He was born in London on 8 January 1920, the son of Herbert Ernest Batten FRCS, consultant orthopaedic surgeon to Charing Cross Hospital, and Margaret Elizabeth Evans. He was educated at Westminster and Pembroke College, Cambridge, where he was a kee

Douglas Bennett was born on 18 July 1918, the son of Geoffrey Bennett, an officer in the North Somerset Yeomanry who subsequently took to ranching in Argentina and his wife Elizabeth Elsa Müller, who was Swiss. He was educated at Minehead Grammar School and at University College Hospital in London,

Alan Mathams was a general practitioner in East Sussex. He did his medical training at the Westminster Hospital, where he qualified in 1977. After junior posts, he chose a career in surgery and was registrar at St James Hospital, Balham, and Epsom District Hospital. He decided to become a GP, joinin

Colin Gagen Ford was a former general practitioner in Chislehurst, Kent. He was born in Merton Park on 11 December 1934, the son of Bertram Leonard Ford and Kathleen May née Gagen. He attended Rutlish School, but left at 16 after gaining his O levels. He joined Cable and Wireless, becoming a profici

Ronald George Gibson, the only child of George Edward Gibson, a pharmacist, and of Gladys Muriel (née Prince), was born at Southampton on 28 November 1909. He was educated at Osborne House School, Romsey, and Mill Hill School before graduating from St John's College, Cambridge. He then went to St Ba

Peter Broadhead Lacy was born in New Malden, Surrey, on 11 November 1923, the son of Ernest Lacy, a pharmacist, and his wife Alice Mildred, née Broadhead. He was educated at Ewell Castle School and Surbiton County School before being awarded a scholarship to Manchester University to read medicine. H

Reginald Walter Patrick Hosford was born on 23 June 1898, the eldest son of Dr B Hosford, a general practitioner in Highgate and elder brother of John P Hosford, FRCS, surgeon to St Bartholomew's Hospital. He was educated at Highgate School where he was a foundation scholar and was admitted to St Ba

Born on 8 December 1870 at Marlborough where his father was manager of the Bank, he followed his three elder brothers to Marlborough College and St Mary's Hospital, which he entered with a scholarship. He served as house surgeon, house physician, and resident obstetric officer, and intended to becom

Ernest Lewis graduated at the University of Witwatersrand in 1953 and served his residencies in the Johannesburg Teaching Group of Hospitals. He subsequently worked at the Doctors' Hospital in New York, the Birmingham Accident Hospital and the University of Bristol. Obtaining his FRCS he returned to